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Stress Test Devotional May 7

by David Joynt on May 07, 2024


MATTHEW 11:28b-29a | 28b I will give you rest. 29a  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me.

 

Jesus promises that when we come to Him, we will find rest and peace for our souls. This wonderful promise requires two moves on our part and they can both seem counter-intuitive.

 

The first move is to yoke our lives to Jesus. This is a first century call to work. Peace and rest do not come from isolating or insulating ourselves from the world’s trouble or pain, but rather from joining God in His kingdom work. As we seek His justice, proclaim His truth, and demonstrate His love, we deepen the sense we have of working for and with Him. Like oxen that teams together, placing in a single yoke, we are paired and productive. Nothing brings peace like knowing your life aligns with His purposes.

 

Do you feel “yoked in?”

 

 

Gracious God,

I don’t want to be in an insulated cocoon. Show me how to serve with You.

Amen.

 

About the Author
David Joynt

Dave Joynt began his service as a pastor at Valley Presbyterian Church in Paradise Valley, Arizona in September 2014. This meant a move away from the Northeast, where he has a long history, growing up in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and then serving congregations in Delaware and New Jersey for a total of 23 years.

Dave was nurtured in a great church in Bethlehem where his parents, Anne and Carey, served as elders. He graduated in classics from Lehigh University where his Father taught, and then from Oxford, where he met his wife Julia. Ordained in 1988, he completed a Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1993.

He and Julia have a son, Tristan, and a daughter, Madeleine.

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